Wednesday, 18 May 2016

Open Letter from Aleppo to Prime Minister David Cameron

You don’t know me, but my name is Farah Alfarhan. I was born in Preston, Lancashire, and I am a British citizen who has lived and worked in Aleppo, Syria, for 27 years. As a result of my humanitarian work with displaced children, I was arrested by the Assad regime in October 2014 and spent a total of 35 days in detention. I was subjected to brutal and humiliating torture at the hands of this regime. Upon my release, I returned home to Britain.

I have been outraged to see that the violence and human rights abuses in Syria are not only continuing to increase in number, but also continue to be met with a failure to act by the British government.

Prime Minister, as someone who has lived through the horrors of the Syrian conflict, I am urging — indeed,demanding— that the British government makes use of the Royal Air Force based a short flight away in Cyprus to deliver humanitarian aid to the starving civilians living in besieged areas across Syria.

Prime Minister, as someone who has lived through the horrors of the Syrian conflict, I am urging — demanding — that the British government takes steps to ensure that the Assad regime’s crimes do not go unaccounted for. We should back the establishment of an international war crimes tribunal without delay.

Prime Minister, as someone who has lived through the horrors of the Syrian conflict, I am urging — demanding yet again — that the British government, of which you are the leader, puts pressure on those such as Russia who fund the brutal Assad regime, provide it with weapons and kill Syrians on its behalf.'